Vancouver property set aside to stage security

Organizers of next year's Vancouver Olympics announced a deal on Tuesday to gain access to much-needed land next to key Games venues in the city center that will serve as staging areas for the event's heavy security.

Without the access to the 4.8 hectares of private land, which will also be used for traffic management and other back-up functions, athletes and spectators could have faced long delays in getting to and from sports events in the built-up city bowl.

"The ability to be operationally ready just took a big bump up," said John Furlong, the Vancouver Organizing Committee's (VANOC) chief executive.

"If we didn't have enough space ... people would have to come earlier and it would take longer because we have to follow very specific security protocols around the Games," he told reporters.